Rising property tax revenues, tax hikes, and the broader economic recovery are driving the longest municipal government hiring streak in the United States since 2008. However, many jobs eliminated during the recession won't be returning.
"Cities across the U.S. are starting to hire new teachers, firefighters and police officers as a deep and prolonged slide in local-government employment appears to have bottomed out four years after the recession ended," report Mark Peters and Stephanie Banchero. "So far this year, 46,000 new jobs have been created on a seasonally adjusted basis. Local-government employment through June stood at 14.08 million, the highest level in more than a year and a half, though still well below a peak of 14.61 million in mid-2008."
However, assert the authors, some jobs eliminated during the recession won't be coming back. "Innovation and efficiency, doing better with less—that's the trend going forward nationally, state, local," said Phoenix City Manager David Cavazos.
"Moody's Analytics is forecasting a continued rise in hiring," Peters and Banchero add, "with local government adding a total of 90,000 jobs this year and 300,000 jobs in 2014. The firm, however, doesn't expect local-government payrolls to reach their all-time peak until late 2015 at the earliest."
FULL STORY: Cities Begin Hiring Again
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
Google Maps Introduces New Transit, EV Features
It will now be easier to find electric car charging stations and transit options.
Ohio Lawmakers Propose Incentivizing Housing Production
A proposed bill would take a carrot approach to stimulating housing production through a grant program that would reward cities that implement pro-housing policies.
Chicago Awarded $2M Reconnecting Communities Grant
Community advocates say the city’s plan may not do enough to reverse the negative impacts of a major expressway.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
Town of Zionsville
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